Here in the high school we believe in giving students opportunities to participate in a rich and diverse learning environment where passions can be pursued and new interests explored. Learning and teaching at ISM is focused on standards that define what students need to know and do. By teaching for understanding we promote inquiry and essential questions surrounding a set of transferable and foundational ‘big ideas’. Our goal is to nurture learners to feel proud of their accomplishments and view themselves as contributors to ISM’s culture of understanding.

Archives

They say that a picture paints a thousand words, so rather than write a thousand words, I thought that I would let all the pictures of ICARE speak for themselves.

HOSPICIO DE SAN JOSE

BAGUIO

PHILIPPINE INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF

GK 2

PAPAYA GROUP 2

Nagbalayon High School – Bataan

ECO STAIRWAY

LA UNION 1

LA UNION 2

BAGUIO 1

CJ RIZAL

SBP

CALIRAYA

TARLAC

BANAWE

COMEMBO

GK ECHANTED FARM

GAT ANDRES

ESTANCIA

BOTOLAN

STAIRWAY

Young Focus (Love2Learn)

BAHAY TULUYAN

ANTIPOLO

STEPPING STONES

RED 1 & 2

PAPAYA ACADEMY

It’s been really quiet in the high school this week with all High School students on service learning activities and must say that I’m really glad to have them all back safe and sound for our final morning together today. I’ll be honest – I’ve really missed them this week; school just isn’t the same when it doesn’t have that buzz of student voices. I do hope that they are happy with their experience whether here in school, in the Metro Manila area or further afield in the provinces. Do make sure to ask probing questions about their week and don’t be content with a “it was ok”. When I look at all those group pictures I realize just what a mammoth task of organization it is for Mr. Woods and Ms. Bee in the CAS Office and so a heartfelt thank-you goes to them. A huge thank-you for a job well done also needs to go out to all of the teachers and TAs that have worked so hard on each individual site to make the experience for the kids a rewarding and memorable one.

Just a reminder that PowerSchool will be closed to all parents and students beginning December 18. It will open on January 23, Wednesday, for parents and students to access the online report card.

We are excited to be holding Run to the Sun again. Here are the official details.

And with that I would like to thank you all for your continued support of our fantastic high school here at ISM. I hope you all have a very Happy Holiday season filled with peace, love and relaxation. And for those of you travelling this next couple of weeks, I wish you uncomplicated journeys and safe returns.

The Bearcats robotics team returned last weekend from an unprecedented performance at the VEX Formosa Tournament in Taipei. Coaches travelled with sixteen students to Taipei American School. ISM fielded four robots against 32 other teams from 10 different schools (including most IASAS schools). One team of seniors won the Excellence Award (best robot) and Tournament Champions after winning all their matches to finish with a 10-0 record.
No Bearcat team has ever won the Excellence Award before. A freshman team received the Judges Award for an exceptional robot and competition performance. This team will have the coveted opportunity to represent the Philippines at the VEX Robotics World Championships in the US in April. All four ISM Robotics teams placed highly within the tournament and demonstrated the overall quality of the Bearcat Robotics program.
Coaches: Ringo Dingrando and Tim Venhuis
Winning Senior Team: Mackenzie Crowe, Ashwin Banwari, Yanpeng Yuan, David Zhang
Freshman Team: Ignacio Mijares, Javier Velayo, Alvaro Lorenzo, Peter Oh

Well done to Freshman Ian Curry who placed 2nd in the Philippine History Bee last week. In a dramatic final, he rallied to within 1-point of the eventual winner. He had been studying very hard the last couple of weeks for this contest. The ISM team placed 3rd out of a field of 24 teams. This was accomplished while missing our upper-classmen (and both co-captains) due to an SAT given Saturday, as well as a robotics competition. Well done all and well done Ian.

The ES/MS/HS Dance Recital starts at 3:0pm on Saturday, December 8th in the ISM Fine Arts Theatre. The Recital draws together both the co-curricular ES and MS AFAC Dance program and the curricular MS and HS Dance classes. This year’s theme is Be Our Guest. For those who are Beauty and the Beast film fans, you will spot the reference to one of its famous songs. The dance groups have taken inspiration from this film, whether this be a song, a character, a scene or a theme that they explore in their own way. Here is a link to the program for the show. Please note, we don’t print full programs with photographs for this event, so download this copy if you wish to keep it for a portfolio. ES/MS/HS Dance Recital Program – December 2018

High School students and their teachers are excitedly making the final preparation for this year’s ICARE. This important service program is one of the most anticipated events in our school calendar, and will run from the 10th to the 14th of December. There will be 830 students working at over 30 sites within Metro Manila and the Provinces, including a group to Estancia Elementary School to continue our post-Typhoon Yolanda work.

These deeply rewarding experiences are an integral component of our school’s mission to educate the whole child, particularly to acknowledge and celebrate our differences and encourage empathy, compassion, understanding and respect for human dignity. Supporting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals across the diverse range of sites, our students will build houses, support education and health programs, engage in farming, conservation efforts, children’s rights, and work with marginalized and underserved communities. By now you should have read through and signed your child’s permission slip containing details of their site. Thank you for your continued support for the ICARE Program, and if you have any questions please contact Mr. Woods (WoodsN@ISManila.org) in the CAS Office. At this time, I would like to thank both Mr. Woods and Bee Suarez in the CAS Office for their tremendous effort and dedication in preparing this mammoth excursion for our students.

Looking a little further ahead…
On January 16th 2019 we will be holding the 2nd annual Manila Student Film Festival here at ISM. There are categories for all our ISM students and also for college students so the evening is a fun mixture of films.
Age 8 – 11 (Junior/Elementary) – Max length – 3-minute film*
Age 12- 14 (Middle/High school) – Max length – 5-minute film*
Age 15 – 18 (Senior/High School) – Max length – 5-minute film*
Age 19 – 21 (Further/Higher) – Max length – 7-minute film*
*There is no minimum length

Last year we had over 70 entries and two films from ISM were awarded prizes by the independent judges. This year we are hoping for even more entries and particularly encourage ES children to submit some films.

The deadline for film submission is December 2nd.

Also looking forward to January, we are excited to be holding Run to the Sun again. Here are the official details.
• When: January 11th 2019 6:0pm – Jan 12th 6:0am
• Where: ISM track
• Who: Teams of up to 12. This can be mixed students, teachers, parents, support staff….
• Why: Raise funds for GreenEarth (We’re asking each runner to donate PhP800, payable at the cashier or kiosk. Keep your receipt!)
• How: Registration Form
• More Info: venhuist@ismanila.org

Last Saturday, November 23rd, the PCA organized a special event for our community, “The Magic of Music”; a concert of classical and holiday pieces. Held in our Fine Arts Theater, the concert featured the Manila Symphony Orchestra, celebrating its 92nd year. Also on stage were 73 of ISM’s very own High School students, who performed side-by-side with the MSO on select pieces. Our student participants were from our Show Choir, Symphonic Band and Orchestra. This was an inspiring experience for our students, and a great event for our Parent and Faculty community. This was a first for the PCA and the school. The PCA proposed the idea last April, following a parent talk on the important role music plays in the development of our children. That led to more discussions among parents about music as a form of recreation and renewal; as part of family traditions and as a way of remembering. So the PCA set out to organize this concert, with the goal of celebrating music in a way that could directly involve everyone, including our students and the faculty. We want to thank the PCA, the MSO and the ISM Music Department, for the initiative and collaboration that brought about this event, and we hope it has helped provide a nice start to your family’s year-end celebrations. (Thanks to Chris Beshouri for this write-up)

On Monday, the last concert of the calendar year was held in the FAT as our Middle School and High School strings combined to perform a variety of new and traditional music under the theme of Transitions. From a high school perspective, it was great to see Grade 7/8 Strings impress with a beautiful version of Jupiter from Holst’s The Planets. It will be exciting to watch their transition to high school and their talent promises to further strengthen our music program. HS Concert Strings delighted the audience with Three Dances from Handel’s Water Music and our wonderful Orchestra ended the concert with another piece from Holst that followed a repeat performance of the highly acclaimed Overture on Philippine Folksongs that was so well-received at Filipiniana Day. Congratulations to Pamela Arrieta, JC Joya and the rest of the Music department.

A big thanks and well done to the Sustainability Council under the guidance of Ms. Alvarez, Ms. Sarkawi, Ms. Patrikios and Mr. Woods who shared their first harvest from our hydroponic towers with our community this week. The hydroponic towers were purchased using donations to the ISM Sustainability Fund and are located in the Japanese Garden outside the Bearcat Café.

The high school varsity robotics team will be taking four robots and sixteen students to Taipei to compete in the VEX Formosa Robotics Competition on Nov 30 and Dec 1. We’ll be squaring off against 30 other robots from 12 different schools and 6 different countries. ISM will be fielding two highly experienced teams of Seniors, along with a team of Juniors and Freshmen. Event info (and livestream) can be found here. Updates on the team (and witty robotic anecdotes) can be followed on twitter via @ringodin. Thanks to Mr. Dingrando and Mr. Venhuis for chaperoning.

And now a couple of reminders:
Firstly, please make sure that your child has asked to sign their permission slips for the upcoming ICARE trips during the week of December 10th to 14th. Make sure that you are aware of and agree with the ICARE site requests made by your son/daughter.

The second reminder is that the MAP test results are now available to you through the ISM parent portal (accessed through www.ismanila.org). If you have forgotten or misplaced your login details, please contact Sam or Laurie at the High School Office who will be happy to supply you these details.

Sports fans! With the long weekend we have a limited schedule of sports events coming up. See below for a quick snapshot of approaching action

Looking a little further ahead…
On January 16th 2019 we will be holding the 2nd annual Manila Student Film Festival here at ISM. There are categories for all our ISM students and also for college students so the evening is a fun mixture of films.

Last year we had over 70 entries and two films from ISM were awarded prizes by the independent judges. This year we are hoping for even more entries and particularly encourage ES children to submit some films.

The deadline for film submission is December 2nd.

Also looking forward to January, we are excited to be holding Run to the Sun again. Here are the official details.***When: January 11th 2019 6:0pm – Jan 12th 6:0am***Where: ISM track***Who: Teams of up to 12. This can be mixed students, teachers, parents, support staff….***Why: Raise funds for GreenEarth (We’re asking each runner to donate PhP800, payable at the cashier or kiosk. Keep your receipt!)***How:Registration Form ***More Info: venhuist@ismanila.org

Well that was a strange week, hearing very late that schools in Taguig had to close on Tuesday and Wednesday. Believe me – closing school is something that we only do when we are forced to and on this occasion we had no choice. One of the upshots is that the All Stings Concert has had to be been moved to next Monday evening (November 26th) at 5:30pm in the FAT. Please come along to support the High School Orchestra, Concert Strings and the Middle School Strings programs. Here is a digital invitation to the concert.

We were however, still able to hold the All Bands Concert last Monday evening. Thanks to all the parents and siblings that came out to support – the audience was very strong this year – perhaps 400-500, so it really gave the students a sense of value to the event. Well done to all the Music department particularly Mr. Nazareno and Mr. Howrey. I especially enjoyed the opening with musicians dotted all over the FAT playing the theme from 20th Century Fox as a prelude to an evening of movie themes.

Sports fans, today is Season 2 Friday Night Lights. Rugby/Touch and Basketball will be on display after school. Come on out to support our teams. Below is the schedule of matches this evening and other events for the rest of the weekend

Sunday Nov 25th Gymnastics team – at Aquazorb meet Club Gymnastica Pasig
Tomorrow evening (November 24th) at 6:00pm in the FAT we have a special event this year, and it is especially relevant for the High School. The PCA has been working with the Manila Symphony Orchestra, and has planned a really nice, festive event that gives us a chance to see the MSO in action, and also promotes our students’ musical development. From 6:00-8:00 pm, the MSO will perform a special concert right here in our own Fine Arts Theater. They will do classical and holiday pieces. A perfect lead up to the end of the year holiday break. But, even better, our students are going to perform with the MSO. The overall program is 15 pieces, and the students will perform side by side for about 7 of the program’s numbers. We will have our 16 students in the Show Choir participating, our 34 student members of the Symphonic Band, and our 25 student members of the ISM Orchestra. The chance to play side-by-side with professional musicians, and to our parent audience, is just a great opportunity for our high school students. So, please come and support this event – it will be great music and great fun.

Just to keep the conversation going regarding underage drinking, I would like to share with you here an article I read this week from the UK Guardian. My own parents subscribed to the notion that starting kids off early would instill in them a “healthy respect” for alcohol so that they learned how to “drink responsibly”. It is good to read that results from recent studies debunks this idea. These studies align with both ISM’s Wellness program in Grade 9 and the teaching from Freedom from Chemical Dependency (FCD).

Looking a little further ahead… On January 16th 2019 we will be holding the 2nd annual Manila Student Film Festival here at ISM. There are categories for all our ISM students and also for college students so the evening is a fun mixture of films.

Last year we had over 70 entries and two films from ISM were awarded prizes by the independent judges. This year we are hoping for even more entries and particularly encourage ES children to submit some films.

The deadline for film submission is December 2nd.

Also looking forward to January, we are excited to be holding Run to the Sun again. Here are the official details.• When: January 11th 2019 6:0pm – Jan 12th 6:0am
• Where: ISM track
• Who: Teams of up to 12. This can be mixed students, teachers, parents, support staff….
• Why: Raise funds for GreenEarth (We’re asking each runner to donate PhP800, payable at the cashier or kiosk. Keep your receipt!)
• How: Registration Form
• More Info: venhuist@ismanila.org